October 1, 2019

Partnering with Foster Care and Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs

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Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs

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Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) Definitions

Runaway youth: a person under 18 years old who is absent from their legal residence without the consent of their parent, legal guardian or custodian

9 NYCRR Subpart 182-1

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Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) DefinitionsA homeless youth is •a person under 18 years old who is in need of services and is without a place of shelter where supervision and care are available; or

•a person who under 21 but at least 18 years old and who is need of services and is without a place of shelter; or

•a homeless young adult as defined below when included in a county’s Child and Family Services Plan.

9 NYCRR Subpart 182-1

Homeless Young Adult:• a person who is age 24 or younger but is

at least age 21 and who is in need of services and is without a place of shelter

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WIOA Eligibility for Runaway and Homeless Youth

TEGL 19-16 Attachment III (continued on next slide)

1. Lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. This includes a participant who is:• sharing the housing of other persons due to loss of

housing, economic hardship, or a similar reason; • living in a motel, hotel, trailer park, or campground due to

a lack of alternative adequate accommodations; • living in an emergency or transitional shelter; • abandoned in a hospital; or • awaiting foster care placement.

A homeless youth is an individual who meets any of the following criteria:

& Violence Against Women Act

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WIOA Eligibility for Runaway and Homeless Youth

TEGL 19-16 Attachment III (continued from previous slide)

A homeless youth is an individual who meets any of the following criteria:

2.Has a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for or ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, such as a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground

3. Is a migratory child who in the preceding 36 months was required to move from one school district to another due to changes in the parent’s or parent’s spouse’s seasonal employment in agriculture, dairy, or fishing work

4. Is under 18 years of age and absents themself from home or place of legal residence without the permission of his or her family (i.e., runaway youth)

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Poll

TEGL 19-16 Attachment III

Does your program currently serve homeless/runaway youth?

(Yes/No)

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Runaway and Homeless Youth Are in Your Community

Voices of Youth Count, Chapin Hall, 2018

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Runaway and Homeless Youth and Education

Voices of Youth Count, Chapin Hall, 2018

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Residential• Crisis Services Programs• Transitional Independent Living Support Programs (TILPs)

Non-residential, including but not limited to: • Street outreach• Drop-in centers• Educational and vocational support• Hotlines• And more!

RHY Programs in NYS

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Crisis intervention with the goal of family reunificationRunaway and Homeless Youth Shelter

• Short-term, emergency housing for up to 20 youth• Serve youth age 17 and under, 16 through 20, or up to 25 in some circumstances• Youth can stay in these programs for up to 30 days; and in some circumstances, as long as

120 days.

Interim Family Program• Short-term emergency shelter for up to two youth in the home of an individual or family with

extra space (Interim Family Home)• Serve youth under 21 years old• Interim family homes are inspected and supervised by OCFS-licensed interim family

programs.

RHY Residential Crisis Services Programs

9 NYCRR Subpart 182-1

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Support youth transitions from crisis to independent living

Supported Residence• Long-term housing for up to five youth (usually an apartment)• Serve youth of the same gender 16-21 years old, or up to 25 in some circumstances• Youth can stay in these programs for up to 18 months, or up to 24 months in some

circumstances

Group Residence• Long-term housing for up to 20 youth• Serve youth between 16-21 years old, or up to 25 in some circumstances• Youth can stay in these programs for up to 18 months, or up to 24 months in some

circumstances

RHY Residential TILPs

9 NYCRR Subpart 182-2

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RHY Rooted in Positive Youth Development

Resiliency

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• As of September 2019, OCFS certifies residential RHY programs in 25 counties.

• 37 crisis services programs

• 90 TILPs

• Two counties fund only non-residential RHY programs.

RHY Programs in NYS

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4,114 were served in crisis services programs.

• 2,115 were from NYC.• 1,999 were from ROS.

Youth Served in Residential RHY Programs

• 1,042 were served in TILPs.• 619 were from NYC.• 423 were from ROS.

5,156 individual youth were admitted to certified residential RHY programs in New York State in 2017• 252 of these youth were pregnant/parenting and were accompanied, in

sum, by 308 dependent children.

https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/reports/2017-RHY-Annual-Report.pdf

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What challenges have you faced working with RHY?What strengths have you seen in RHY?

How have you worked with RHY programs?

Share

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Questions on RHY Programs

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Foster Care Programs

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• Foster care youth are in the legal custody of social service commissioners, but physically placed in home or residential settings.

• Placements are either by order of a court (involuntary) or because their parents are willing to have them cared for temporarily outside of the home (voluntary).

Foster Care

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• An involuntary placement occurs when a child has been abused or neglected (or may be at risk of abuse or neglect) by his or her parent or someone else in the household, or because a court has determined that the child is a “person in need of supervision” or a juvenile delinquent. The court orders the child removed from the home and determines the length of the placement.

• Youth ages 14-21 are eligible for WIOA programs.

Foster Care – Involuntary Placement

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Foster Boarding Homes (max of 6 children age 0-18)

• Kinship care

Therapeutic Foster Boarding Homes (max of 6 children)

• Children can enter foster care until the age of 18 and can remain in care to the age of 21.

Placement Types

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Congregate Care• Agency Operated Boarding Home (6 bed max)• Group Home (12 bed max, 7 bed min.; at least 5-years-old at admission)• Institution (13 or more beds)• Supervised Independent Living Program [(SILP)(16 – 21 year old)]• Close to Home (only NYC for Juvenile Justice adjudicated youth)

Adoption

KinGap (promotes permanency for foster children who do not have a discharge goal of return to parent or adoption)

Placement Types

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WIOA Eligibility for Foster Care Youth

TEGL 19-16 Attachment III

• In foster care• Aged out of the foster care system • Attained 16 years of age and left foster care for

kinship, guardianship or adoption• In an out-of-home placement• A child eligible for assistance under the section

477 of the Social Security Act (John H. Chafee Foster Care Independence Program)

Involved in any stage of the foster care system:

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All youth achieve one of these permanency planning goals upon discharge from foster care:• Return to parents• Placement with a fit and willing

relative• Referral for legal

guardianship/custody• Placement for adoption• Placed in another planned living

arrangement• Discharge to adult residential care

Permanency Planning Goals (PPG)

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Poll

TEGL 19-16 Attachment III

Do you work with youth who have aged out of foster care system?

(Yes/No)

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Statewide Trends in Foster Care Population

22,52421,047

20,01618,878 18,423

17,32016,215 16,140

12,660 11,093 10,422 9,861 9,920 9,076 8,752 9,153

14,056 12,599

11,502 11,128 10,413 10,164 9,783 9,129

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

In Care 12/31 (24 Hrs)AdmissionsDischarges

Overall foster care population: in care (24 hours), admissions and discharges

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Age Distribution of Children in Care on 12/31/17

<14 Years64%

14-21 Years36%

All Children in Care (N=17,745)

14 Years13%

15 Years15%

16 Years19%17 Years

19%

18 Years14%

19 Years10%

20 Years8%

21 Years2%

Children 14-21 in Care (N=6,404)

3/26/2018

Over 1/3 of the youth in care overall are between 14 and 21; of those, 66% are 14-17 years old and 34% are 18 or older

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St. Regis

• Substantial variation in the number of youth aged 14-21 by county• Map shows the number of individual youth ages 14 to 21 who

were in care in each county as of 12/31/17

Number of Children Aged 14-21 in Foster Care by County

Children Aged 14 to 21 in Foster Care on 12/31/17 as % of All Children in the County Aged 14-21

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Placement Setting Distribution of Youth 14-21 Years as of 12/31/17

47%34%

17%

5%

24%

39%

10%15%0% 0%

2% 7%

NYC (14-21 Years) ROS (14-21 Years)

Other

SILP

GroupHome/AOBHInstitution/GroupResidenceApproved RelativeHome

Congregate Care: NYC 34% & ROS 54%

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• Academic Support• Post Secondary Educational Support• Career Preparation• Employment Programs or Vocational Training• Budget and Financial Management• Housing Education and Home Management Training• Health Education and Risk Prevention• Family Support and Healthy Marriage Education• Mentoring• Supervised Independent Living• Room and Board Financial Assistance• Education Financial Assistance

Independent Living Services

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Education and Training Vouchers (ETV)The Education and Training Voucher Program helps youth aging out of foster care to make the transition to self-sufficiency and receive financial assistance for higher education or vocational training.

Foster Youth College Success Initiative (FYCSI)This program provides additional support services and funding to help meet the costs of college for eligible students.

Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)Youth may be eligible for TAP if they are attending SUNY CUNY and not for profit independent degree granting colleges on a part time basis.

Higher Education/Vocational Supports

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There are 58 local departments of social services in New York State.https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/localdss.asp

There are 95 voluntary agencies providing congregate care in New York State.

There are 127 certified residential RHY programs in New York State. https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/youth/rhy/

Local Partnership Opportunities

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We have youth in common; we have similar goals; and we have complementing services.

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Questions?